There had been rumors circling around recently regarding Sony’s intentions to acquire Sony Ericsson. Today, those rumors have been made official. Sony has bought out Sony Ericsson’s shares and will soon integrate the mobile phone maker into the Sony empire as a whole. Sony will pay Ericsson €1.05 billion (approximately $1.47 billion) in a deal that’s expected to close in January 2012. It still has to be approved by executives in both companies, but that’s customary in transactions such as this.

So what does this mean for Sony Ericsson customers? For one, there won’t be any more Sony Ericsson feature phones once Sony takes control. Sony will be focusing purely on the smartphone market as it continues to find ways to integrate its online services through various pieces of hardware. Sony’s main goal is to create an ecosystem that’s similar to what Apple has created. Sony wants customers to purchase all their digital media through their online stores. That content can then be played back on the PS3, Sony’s S1 and S2 tablets, Blu-ray players, Bravia TVs and upcoming Sony smartphones.

Not too long ago, Sony revealed Sony Entertainment Network as the one-stop hub for Sony’s online services such as the PlayStation Network, Music Unlimited and Video Unlimited.

The Sony Ericsson acquisition could also mean an increase in PlayStation Certified smartphones. Since Sony will be making the smartphones, it makes no sense why they wouldn’t be designed to take full advantage of Sony’s offerings.